Unemployment rate rises in Missoula County, holds across state
(Missoula Current) A slight uptick in the nation's unemployment rate had little effect on Montana, where the rate of unemployment stayed at 3.1% in June.
At the same time, general consumer prices in Montana fell 0.1% The index for gasoline fell 3.8% in June, which followed a decline of 3.6% in May.
According to the Montana Department of Labor and Industry, total employment and the number of people in the labor force rose together in June, leading to no change in the unemployment rate overall.
Payroll employment also showed steady gains, adding 1,600 jobs in June. The state said the professional and business services industry led the charge, followed by healthcare and transportation.
Gov. Greg Gianforte praised the latest figures.
“With more Montanans working now than ever before, we saw another month of steady employment increases across industries,” Gianforte said in a statement. “Thanks to our pro-business, pro-jobs policies, we’re creating an environment where businesses can thrive, create more good-paying jobs, and increase opportunities for all Montanans.”
Democratic leaders also took credit for the figures, saying their policies and funding for such things as infrastructure has created thousands of new jobs while investing in projects at the local level.
The jobs figures varied by county. Missoula County has lost 356 jobs since this time last year and now has an unemployment rate of 3.3%, marking an increase of 0.7% over last year. In comparison, Gallatin County added 1,700 new jobs over the same period and has a rate of unemployment of just 2.5%
Some of the challenges in Missoula can be attributed to the closer of several area mills. The Montana Department of Labor and Industry this month announced $2 million in funding to help retrain those effected by the closures.
Ravalli County's unemployment rate is 3.4%; Lake County at 3.9%; Granite County at 4.4%; Sanders County at 5.1% and Mineral County at 5.6%.
The Flathead Indian Reservation had the lowest unemployment rate of the state's seven reservations at 4.2%. The Rocky Boy's, Fort Belknap and Northern Cheyenne each have unemployment rates over 10%.